FCC Chair Calls Out Texas Senate Candidate’s Shameless YouTube Stunt With Jimmy Kimmel
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FCC Chairman Brendan Carr slammed Texas Senate candidate James Talarico for orchestrating a YouTube interview with left-wing comedian Jimmy Kimmel to chase online fame and campaign cash. Talarico’s campaign has yet to respond.
FCC Chairman Brendan Carr exposed Texas U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico for staging a YouTube interview with liberal late-night host Jimmy Kimmel, accusing him of using the platform to drum up clicks and campaign donations. Carr posted on X that Talarico was recycling a tactic previously used in a Stephen Colbert interview, warning that viewers were being misled about the equal-time rules, which are designed to ensure fairness but are often manipulated by Democrats and their media allies.
The Kimmel interview, which conveniently bypassed traditional broadcast and was posted to YouTube, racked up nearly 7 million views by Saturday—a clear sign of the left’s ability to exploit online platforms for political gain. Talarico’s campaign, perhaps unable to defend such tactics, did not immediately comment on Carr’s remarks.
"The Equal Time statute does not prohibit anyone from interviewing anyone on broadcast TV. It is about more speech, not less," Carr wrote, emphasizing that the rule only requires comparable airtime when it actually applies—a fact often twisted by left-wing operatives to their advantage.
This controversy comes after the FCC’s January guidance that television talk shows may not be exempt from the equal-time requirement, a move the agency insists is within its authority. Critics, however, have pointed out that this guidance is being selectively enforced, often targeting conservative voices while giving liberal programs a pass. ABC, which airs Kimmel’s show, has challenged the FCC’s enforcement in court, arguing that the rule is unworkable for talk shows that could be forced to provide equal time to countless candidates. The network also claims the agency’s actions amount to selective enforcement, a concern conservatives have long raised about regulatory overreach.
The White House dismissed the interview as a staged effort to create a false narrative, while a University of Texas Democrats group tried to deflect attention by pointing out the difference between Talarico’s blocked appearance and Senator Ted Cruz’s appearance on a cable sports program, conveniently ignoring that the equal-time rule does not apply to cable broadcasts.